“I thought my Olympic dream was over,” Joscelyn Roberson admits, reflecting on the grueling journey that nearly shattered her aspirations. At Target Center in Minneapolis, on the final day of the USA Olympic trials for gymnastics, Roberson hit her final pose, completing 8-8 events, and the crowd erupted. It didn’t matter that the 18-year-old had not made it onto the leaderboard at that moment and was set to become a traveling alternate.

What mattered was that Roberson had overcome months of pain from an injury to nail a landing and showcase her incredible prowess in the sport. As she cried and hugged coach Cecile Landi, a new moment in history was made. Now, after having some time to collect her thoughts following the grueling trials, Roberson spoke about just how hard the journey has been for her. Despite the setbacks, her unwavering spirit kept her Olympic dream alive.

A year-old injury ruined Joscelyn’s Olympic chances

In an interview with Olympics.com, Joscelyn Roberson spoke about the setbacks she has faced since the 2023 Worlds due to an injury sustained during warm-ups for the team final at the 2023 World Championships in Antwerp, Belgium. She said, “My ankle was still really hurt, it hurt bad still in February. It definitely was, ‘24’s not happening. You’re not going to get to the Olympic trials even’ because our team this year has so much depth.” However, Roberson managed to secure a spot as a traveling alternative for the US female gymnastics team alongside the University of Florida’s Leanne Wong. 

This means in case there’s an injury or some other reason a gymnast steps down from the competition, she can fill in their spot to keep the strength of the team intact. At the 2023 World Championship, Roberson froze after a landing due to an ankle injury and her coach, Laurent Landi, had to carry her off the mat. The pain from the injury sustained during the warmup persisted through January and February despite support from her team of coaches and doctors. This even took a mental toll on her. However, she continued to deliver a great performance at the trials, finishing with an all-around score of 110.975 and narrowly missing the Olympic spot.

She fell behind Hezly Rivera. Interestingly, Roberson was first place on the balance beam. She was also 4th on the floor exercise and 6th overall. She also narrowly missed becoming the first gymnast from the University of Arkansas to make it onto the team. During the first day of the competition, she scored a career high of 55.475. Following it up with 55.500 on the second day. Further, she expressed her support for the women who made it onto the team and promised to be their biggest supporter. 

Roberson keeping her head high

As traveling alternates, Leanne Wong and Joscelyn Roberson will train alongside Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera. They will be coached by Kyla Ross, Chris Brooks and Jordyn Wieber. All the coaches have previous Olympics experience. The women’s artistic gymnastics will begin on the 28th of this month with AA finals scheduled on 1st August. So that means the pressure is on. Team USA can definitely count on Roberson, who has always been an extraordinary performer. Lloyd White, who was her coach till 16, said, “When she walked in the gym as a five-year-old, even then, she was extremely confident about everything that she did.”

Last year she had standout performances with first place on the vaults, second on balance beam and floor exercise at the Winter Cup. Following this she was a part of the DTB Pokal Team Challenge where she secured gold in vault and silver in floor. At the Cairo World Cup she nabbed a gold on vault and floor and a silver on balance beam. At the Pan Ams, she won a gold and a silver, contributing to USA’s first place finish. Though USA secured their 7th title in the world championship last year, the injury has plagued Roberson throughout 2024. Hopefully, she’ll be able to return stronger in the next cycle.